Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 13, 2026
A Method of Trigonometric Modelling of Seasonal Variation Demonstrated with Multiple Sclerosis Relapse Data
Published on: December 9, 2015
Association of vitamin D and multiple sclerosis in India
Lekha Pandit1, Sreeram V Ramagopalan, Chaithra Malli
1Center for Advanced Neurological Research, KS Hegde Medical Academy, Nitte University, India.
Background:
Vitamin D deficiency is widely prevalent in India. The association between vitamin D status and multiple sclerosis (MS) has not been previously studied in Indians.
Objective:
The objective of this paper is to determine whether vitamin D status is associated with MS in India.
Methods:
In this study 110 MS patients and 108 matched controls were included. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) was measured in 63 patients in relapse, 77 patients in remission and all controls. Quantity of sun exposure in childhood and body mass index (BMI) were calculated. Patients and controls were genotyped for HLA-DRB1*1501.
Results:
Patients had significantly lower 25(OH)D levels than matched controls (p = 0.003), and patients in relapse had a significantly lower vitamin D level as compared to those in remission (p = 0.001). Vitamin D deficiency (< 50 nmol/l) was seen in a higher proportion of cases (71.8%) than controls (53.7%) (p = 0.01). Higher quartiles of vitamin D (> 58 nmol/l) showed an inverse relationship with MS (OR = 0.28, CI = 0.11-0.68, p= 0.005). This effect persisted after adjusting for sun exposure.
Conclusion:
The results of our study indicated that serum 25(OH)D shows an inverse relationship with MS in the Indian population. Reverse causality cannot be excluded.
Related Concept Videos
01:19Multiple Sclerosis l: Introduction
01:22Connective Tissue Cell Types
Fat cells (adipocytes), smooth muscle cells (myoblasts), and bone cells (osteoblasts) are some connective tissue cell types. Some immune system cells...
01:23Role of Skin in Vitamin D Synthesis
The solar UV B rays (290-315 nm) are absorbed by the skin, and 7-dehydrocholesterol (provitamin D3) photolyzes it to previtamin D3, which undergoes a rapid transformation to vitamin D3(cholecalciferol).
01:25Role of Vitamins in Maintaining Bone Health
Vitamin A
Vitamin A is involved in the process of bone remodeling. Retinoic acid, the active metabolite of Vitamin A, has nuclear receptors in osteoblasts and osteoclasts, which are involved in bone remodeling.
Vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 acts as a cofactor during the formation of osteoblast-related proteins, such as osteocalcin. Vitamin B12 plays a role...
01:30Vitamins
01:29Autoimmune Disorders
Concept and Mechanism of Autoimmune Diseases
The immune system...